I get asked what my favorite Portland food carts are A LOT and I have a few spots that I always say but I don’t really eat at carts all that often. I used to when I worked downtown but now that I don’t they just aren’t a regular thing for me beyond this one by my writing studio. That’s why I asked my friend Brett Burmeister of Food Carts Portland to write the food cart chapter for the second edition of my Food Lover’s Guide to Portland and lucky for me he did.

Sooooo, I’m really looking forward to the eighth annual Willamette Week Eat Mobile (Wednesday, April 29th from 5-9pm) because I’m going to taste my way around TWENTY FIVE different PDX food carts. Yeah, yeah, yeah! Also at the event: music from DJ Short Change and Clarinet Cat Box and tasty beer from Baerlic Brewing Co. Strangely enough, I’ve never been to Eat Mobile — really looking forward to it.

Here’s a video from last year’s. For EM volunteer inquiries contact aboucher at wweek dot com and for sponsorship or press inquiries contact sbarnhart@wweek.com.

Here’s the scoop poop straight from WW. Tickets are available now and there are only 400 this year so get them while you still can:

This year, instead of bringing the carts to the people, the festival brings the people to the carts. Guests will enjoy samples from carts at two SE Portland pods, Tidbit and A La Carts Food Pavilion (Himalayan Food cart at this pod is one of my VERY FAVORITES!! So good.). Tickets are available here and admission is $40 and includes a wristband for more than 25 food samples, two free drinks, live music and shuttle service between pods.

“This festival is a flagship event for Willamette Week and we’re excited about the change,” said Steph Barnhart, events and marketing manager. “We want to allow the cart owners to do what they do best in their natural environment, and let guests taste something from nearly every cart at two pods we love.”

Attendees will get samples from carts as the vendors compete for the coveted Carty Award, selected by Eat Mobile guests and judges. Guests will also vote for one pod to win “Best Pod Experience.”

Food Lover’s Guide to Portland blog is a collection of some of the research, recipes, images and culinary adventures that went into the making of Food Lover’s Guide to Portland. The first edition came out in 2010 and I started the blog in February 2009 as a companion piece to it and to help organize my thoughts while researching and writing it. The second edition came out in September 2014 from Hawthorne Books.